Upon moving his family into a house that was previously the scene of a horrific murder, true crime novelist Ellison Oswalt discovers a box of home videos depicting the butchering of several families, and begins piecing together the reasons for which they were made.
If I can give one piece of advice regarding how you watch Sinister, it is not to see it in a packed out cinema full of teenagers that scream at the slightest whiff of malevolence and then in turn laugh at their own reaction. I say this simply because the atmosphere that budding horror director Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose) builds throughout the film is outstanding. Poignantly low-lighted shots throughout the film often leave you unsure as to whether the scenes take place in the day or night. This is in contrast to how most horror films usually allow the viewer to know what time of day it is and establish that the night scenes are to be feared.
However without this norm, along with the truly unsettling soundtrack, the overall result is a nerve-wracking 110 minutes of film. Interestingly, one of the scenes rendered the previously excitable audience silent, and I knew I was in for a treat. Or perhaps an enormous jump moment. It’s a horror film, go figure.
Many films in this genre have moments of respite allowing for the audience to relax into a false sense of security and Sinister does this cleverly with comic relief. Not only does this add to the overall entertainment value of the film, but the humour is seemingly self-aware. It pokes fun at the conventional characters introduced into horror films and makes light of some of the terrifying events that come to pass.
I am of the opinion that the plots of many recent horror films have become fairly predictable and, unfortunately, Sinister does fall into this category (think Insidious or the Paranormal Activity franchise). That said, this film is both rewarding for those new to horror and satisfying for those familiar with the style of the genre.
Laurie Pope
My Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Rotten Tomatoes Critics’ Average: 3.1/5 stars
exeposedev 